themes in a christmas carol Flashcards
what is meant by the theme ‘spirit of Christmas’
dickens refers to the spirit of Christmas to honour Christmas and keep it well, its a time for people to be kind and celebrate, in the novel Christmas i s describe in terms of religion, tradition and selfless behavior
give a quote for the theme the spirit of Christmas in stave 1
“a kind, forgiving, charitable , pleasant time: the only time i know of in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem to by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely” - Fred stave 1
how is the spirit of Christmas represented symbolically
Dickens uses the ghosts of Christmas present to represent Christmas, its surrounded with things associated with Christmas and is described using adjectives like “jolly”, “genial” and “cheery”
give a quote which shows how the spirit of Christmas is presented
“… free as its genial face, its sparkling eyes ,its open hand, its cheery voice, its unconstrained demeanour, and its joyful air…. but no sword was in it, and the ancient sheath was eaten up with rust” stave 3
what does the quote “the ancient sheath e=was eaten up with rust” say about the ghost of Christmas present
the rusting sheath with no sword in it suggest there is no conflict or wars during Christmas and its a peaceful time of the year
what Christmas traditions are shown in the novel
the ghost of Christmas Present and Past are both associated with holly and the ghost of Christmas Present is also seen with ivy and mistletoe, the traditions of bringing this plants home at this time of year go back to pagan festivals.
it is also traditional to feast on food and drink. dickens mentions turkey which was thought as a luxury meat for Christmas in the 19th Century
give a quote to show how Christmas traditions are presented in the novel
“heaped up on the floor, to form a kind of throne, were turkeys, geese,game, poultry… mince-pies, plum puddings , barrels of oysters, red-hot chestnuts” stab=ve 3
how do the different characters honour the spirit of Christmas
Fred Mr Fezziwig throw parties , and display a spirit of generosity
Bob Cratchit and Fred show the Christmas spirit by their attitude towards Scrooge
give a quote for how Mr Fezziwig show the spirit of Christmas
“there were more dances and there were forfeits, and more dances, and there was cake, and there was negus, and there was a great piece of Cold Roast, and there were mince-pies, and plenty of beer.” -Mr Fezziwigs stave 2 b
give a quote for how Bob Cratchit shows the spirit of Christmas
“Mr Scrooge!” said Bob,” I’ll give you Mr Scrooge, the founder of the feast” - stave 3 b -a toast to him for paying Bob even though hes a bad boss and pays him little
what is meant by ‘avarice’ in the theme money and avarice
avarice is one of the seven deadly sins which means greed/an excessive desire for wealth
give a quote which shows the theme of money and avarice in the character scrooge
“i have seen your nobler aspirations fall of one by one, until the master-passion, gain , engrosses you. have I not?” Belle stave 2 c
